The Pursuit of Happiness
by notthtgurl
Summary: Can you imagine growing up in a world where complete strangers seem to care about your every move? Where you've been placed on a pedestal simply because your parents lead a war against some creep that's been dead for nearly thirty years? This is what I deal with everyday of my life, well me and the rest of the Potter/Weasley brats. I am Rose Weasley and I am no Princess. Rose/OC
1. Introductions

**A/N : Jk Owns everything but the dysfunction I've created. Please note that although I use some of the same characters this story is totally independent of my other stories. Enjoy.**

Always wake up in your own bed.

That's the first piece of advice I'd give anyone if they asked. Ever since a mishap in seventh year at Hogwarts (that may or may not have involved setting a couch in the Slytherin common room on fire) I've been determined to live by this rule. See I have a routine. I sleep the exact same way every night and wake up the exact same way every morning. I have six pillows on my bed and I surround myself with them so that I don't fall straight onto the floor as I roll over to hit the snooze button. I like knowing what to expect in the morning, not holding my breath and crossing my fingers that whatever is lying next to me is reasonably good looking. I always want to be in control, and in my bed the only thing that challenges my authority is my goddamn alarm clock.

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

I couldn't hit snooze again and I knew it, after the seventh time it would just feel lazy. And so I kicked off all of the covers confining me and rolled onto my feet. I shuffled to the bathroom as fast and quiet as possible. My cousin Dom was sleeping soundly in the next room (hopefully alone) and if she woke up I would have to battle tooth and nail for the privilege to use the limited hot water.

The condition of the bathroom reveals to me right away just how drunk my cousin had been the night before. The rug in front of the shower was two feet away from its usual spot and folded over onto itself (from when she slipped on it, busted her ass, and then kicked it in frustration), the medicine cabinet was open, its contents nearly falling out due to how poorly they had been put back ( her desperation to find a pain reliever for her headache) , the cap on the tooth paste was missing (I'm sure I would find it under the sink), and the trash bin was overflowing with tissues (because every time she drinks she cries for hours about how she's going to die alone until she promptly passes out). On a scale of one to ten I would place her drunkeness at about a 7. Had she been a ten I would have walked in to find her lying on the floor next to the toilet with her favorite stuffed cat (Romeo) and a jug of Pineapple juice. (which she believes prevents hangovers)

Just as I do every Saturday I clean up after her, find the toothpaste cap, and start preparing for my own shower. I glance at myself in the mirror before the steam fogs it over. I hadn't done as good of a job taking off my make up last night as I thought I had. I absolutely hated working late it always left me with mascara smears the next morning. My auburn hair was a big boring mess, there was even a few bobby pins that I had to wrestle out. I was so pale. Either the bathroom lighting was deceiving or I needed to tan. I looked like every girl looked after a late Friday night, but I was still beautiful me.

When the water starts getting cold I turn off the shower and carefully step out onto the bath mat. The flat was still dead silent so I simply dried myself off with a towel best I could and ran across the hall into my bedroom. Since today was just going to be an errand day I would let my hair dry naturally. It would get incredibly frizzy ( a gene from my mother) and by lunch I would be so frustrated with it , it would end up tied in a bun on the top of my head. None of that mattered though. I could look as terrible as I wanted today, because the only date I had was with a to-do list.

Get dressed.

I dug through my drawers to find my favorite pair of jeans. (Comfortable waistband, plenty of pocket space, and enough tears to get me a genuine look of disgust from my mother) and my Puddlemere United hoodie. I can't really say I follow quidditch closely anymore. I was a Puddlemere fan only because a close friend of mine had played for them for a few years after he graduated from Hogwarts. He was really good, until a bludger smashed up his arm so bad that even though they grew the bones back his nerves and muscles were never the same. He had no real control of his dominant arm and when you're a keeper on a professional quidditch team that is a career ending injury. It's a very sad story, he was a quidditch prodigy trying to fill his father's shoes and his dreams were totally shattered. I still wear the hoodie sometimes though. (just for the memories) Once I had dressed I tiptoed out into the kitchen. #2 on my to-do list should have been groceries, however the list Dom and I had been compiling over the week on our dry erase board had been replaced with a message. _" – Rose, I'm not dead. XOXO Dom."_

"Nice to know," I said to myself "but so much for groceries."

3. New work clothes.

This meant a trip to London. Dom and I lived in a rather expensive flat about 10 minutes outside of the busy streets. And when I say expensive I truly mean it. I couldn't live here without Dom, we both have full time jobs and we barely get by. Though I will admit that we aren't the wisest spenders (i.e buying new boots somehow seems more practical than paying the rent). Perhaps that has finally caught up to us. I kicked a moving box across the floor and make a note in my head.

4. Find somewhere to live.

A week ago I had found an eviction notice taped to our door. Dom hadn't come up with her half of the rent , and waited until it was 2 weeks overdue before telling me she couldn't afford to keep living here and thus neither could I. I'm still not sure exactly why she couldn't pay rent all of the sudden. As far as I know her salary is still the same, and I know for a fact that she still has her job. Every time I try to ask she changes the subject so I've given up. As of right now I'm pretty angry with her for the situation she's put us in. After all she has the option of moving back in with her parents, I don't.

Since we live in an area occupied mostly by muggles we have to be very cautious about where and when we apparate. Our designated spot is in the alley behind our building in between two dumpsters. Dom whines about the smell all the time, I just hold my breath. 1, 2, 3 POP!

I appear in a similar alley, this one next to a Wizard's pub _The Leaky Cauldron._ The moment I walk in I am bombarded by the voluptuous barmaid and owner Hannah Longbottom. Hannah and her husband Neville are very close with my family….and Neville was also my favorite professor at Hogwarts where he was recently named headmaster after McGonagall stepped down.

"Have you seen the Prophet this morning!" Hannah yells towards me from her position behind the bar.

"Well good morning to you too." I say as I walk towards her. "No I haven't seen it, just woke up a bit ago. What's happened? Did James snog another cocktail waitress?"

Hannah doesn't answer but shoves the paper towards me. I see a picture of myself and Dom in the corner of the front page. "Weasley Angst Pulls Family Apart Yet Again. (Full story on page 4).

"Must not be too scandalous if they didn't give us the front page." I say as I flip to the fourth page. I skimmed the article fast. It was a typical dramatization of something insignificant. I recognized the author's name immediately. She had written a lot of horrible articles about my family over the past few years. This however wasn't one of her better pieces.

"She was desperate, this isn't exactly riveting news." I say laying it face down on the bar. "The Potter lot must be laying low _"

"Is it true?" Hannah asks frantically "Are you two really not speaking?!"

"No, Dom and I are fine. We didn't row we just can't afford that flat anymore."

"Oh good, I'd hate to see your poor family suffer through anymore drama. If you girls need somewhere to stay you know you have a room here."

"Thank you Hannah. " I smiled "I'm off to Diagon alley, maybe I'll look around there see if anything is available."

"Alright dear, just let me know if you need a place to stay. And for Merlin's sake write your mother, she's probably worrying herself sick."

I waited until I had crossed over to Diagon Alley before I rolled my eyes. I wouldn't need to write to my mother. I'm sure there would be a howler waiting for me when I arrived back at my flat. My parents' owl will wait until I get there like it always does. Pig won't leave letters with Dom anymore. He's hated her ever since the day she gave him a stale marshmallow treat and he nearly choked to death. I never knew owls could hold grudges. Seems like more of a cat thing.

Diagon alley has been expanding in the last ten years or so. Every day there seems to be more and more people, more street vendors , and more wizards selling the blasted prophet (in addition to other magazines that print tedious gossip instead of actual news.) The shop I'm headed too is close to the end of Diagon Alley so I glare at two giant stacks of newspapers before I arrive.

"_The Witching Hour Boutique" _ a tiny little store that sells the finest lingerie in all of England , at least in my opinion. Plus they have my measurements on file.

I should take a moment to say, there are two things you should know about me.

The first is the only thing the wizarding world cares to know…I am Rose Weasley, daughter of two of the golden trio and favorite niece of the chosen one. I am red haired royalty, but it's nothing I would ever brag about. Fame is actually quite daunting really, it's not as if you get paid for all the rumors people spread about you. Luckily I'm not a usual target. When the press is hungry for a story , they go for the loud and translucent. My cousin James for instance, who allows himself to be photographed at bars grinding on teenage girls wearing sailor hats ( at least according to the last photo I saw) despite the fact that he is engaged to a very prominent wizard's daughter.

The second, is the only thing the Wizarding world will never know. I am an escort, or what most people would call a whore. I'm sure all that brings to mind is dirty brothels in sketchy places like Knockturn alley but on the contrary it's quite civilized. I work for an agency that only serves the finest and wealthiest. This agency not only prescreens everyone involved, but has very complicated secrecy laws that protect me and every one of my clients. I don't feel bad about what I do. It's usually not just about sex. Some men are just lonely, others just want to talk. I realize I'll never change some people's minds about this industry. If the world found out what I do they'd call me a slut and abuse me for the rest of my life, which is why they never will find out. I can count the people that know the truth about me on my fingers. My cousins and my co-workers. My clients couldn't identify me if they wanted too (those secrecy enchantments I mentioned) they know me as Scarlett. And by exchange I cannot reveal to anyone their identity. I see myself as a professional, one day I hope to run the agency ( as I am very much in the pocket of its current Madame) There are drawbacks though. Obviously I hear a lot of grief (constantly) from the people who do know my secret , trying to convince me to give it all up and be normal. Also, my job pretty much makes a relationship impossible. No guy in his right mind could want to be with someone whose job is to pretend like they're someone else's girlfriend for money. I get lonely sometimes, but usually I have Dom to hang out with, or Al. And if I get too depressed I just go shopping and remind myself why my job is worth it. That is the third drawback, I spend more money on underwear than any human being in existence. Which is why I leave the boutique with two full shopping bags.

Before I head back to the flat (to make sure Dom hasn't drowned herself in the shower) I decide to stop by Albus' shop. It's a bit out of the way, as its further down from the Leaky Cauldron where all the school- related shops are, but he's undoutbly seen the prophet and is probably convinced Dom and I have killed each other . Albus became a business owner long before I became an escort. He's always been very cynical and throughout his teen years he took up an interest in muggle technology (something Grandpa Weasley sympathized with). Well before I knew it graduation had barely passed and Al had written a book. "Weakness of a Wand" is essentially a three hundred page essay on why magic is out of date. It encourages people to learn about muggle technology as its making advancements faster than the Wizarding world is. It also makes several direct references to prominent pureblood families that he believes are "continuously setting us back with blood prejudice" and he blatantly insults almost everything the Ministry of Magic does. Needless to say he did not get a good reaction. Almost immediately the book was banned in most Wizarding bookstores. It was also slandered by the prophet who cautioned parents to forbid their children to read it. What they failed to realize was that telling youths they shouldn't read it only made them want to. People started contacting Albus directly to buy the book, and a few short months later with the profits from the book and from a few summers working as a stock boy in Uncle George's shop, Al rented a tiny space in Diagon Alley and filled it with his book, books similar in theme , and some muggle books and gadgets. It gets a lot of attention from people of our generation. Older people still look down their noses at it. Some feel more passionately, as it has been vandalized a few times. But Al is perfectly happy and business is good so those people aren't accomplishing much. He, James , and our friend Jordan Wood all live in the flat right above the store. (Jordan actually works there, James is just living there until he marries his spoiled princess of a fiancé and moves to a mansion.) When I get to the shop the lights are out and the door is locked. The boys must be having a late start this morning , maybe that's who Dom was out with last night. I approach the door to head up to their flat when I see a sign.

"1 bedroom flat for rent, third floor."

I could not be happier. This is a sign from Merlin! I know the place is probably small and crappy considering half of the third floor is Albus' storage space, but it would be somewhere cheap to live while I actually start to save money. AND it would please everyone in the family since I'm so close to the boys! AND I could say I'm working with Al instead of making something different up every time I see my mother! AND Since I'll always be here she can't prove me wrong!

Immediately I abandon my journey to visit my cousins, rip the flyer off of the door , and race back towards the Leaky Cauldron so I can apparate home. I had to write Al's landlady immediately. If this works out than I can actually sleep peacefully tonight!

"DOM!" I yell when I burst through our door. She's sitting at the table wearing an enormous hoodie and looking essentially like death. "Dom I found somewhere cheap enough for me to live!" I said.

She stared at me "Any room for me? "

"1 bedroom." I said regretfully "But good news is now I'm not mad at you! Well I am. But only for erasing the grocery list." I hugged her as I walked towards my room to deposit my shopping bags.

"Where is it?" she asked with a mouthful of pineapple juice.

"It right above Al's flat! I was going over there to_"

"Wait you didn't go up there with that Puddlemere hoodie on did you? You know that gets Wood all depressed."

I shook my head "No I just saw the flyer and came back here to write the land lady." I grabbed some parchment and started writing frantically. "Is Rapunzel out on the windowsill?" (our owl not the princess)

Less than an hour later I had received a reply. The woman, Ms. Bishop was desperate to fill the place. She said if I could send her a deposit I could move in as early as next weekend.

"I'm happy for you." Dom said halfheartedly "I may just move in with Victiore at least until she and Ted finally get married."

I beamed at her. "Im going to write to Albus. Hopefully he'll be pleased."

"As long as he never has to see you dressed for work." She said "I doubt he'll be as understanding as I am."

"Oh by the way Dom read the prophet."

"Oh damn, am I in it? How bad is it?"

"It's us, apparently we've rowed and we're ripping the family apart and yada yada yada."

"That's lame. All the crazy shit I did last night and that's all they have on me. It's almost disappointing."

"Okay I'm going to write Al, you should probably bathe."

She smelled herself and nodded at me as I gathered more parchment.

This couldn't have been a more perfect day.

**A/N: Despite Rose's revelation rest assured that there will be NO vulgarity in this story (i.e No Fifty Shades of anything) and I am in no way indorsing prostitution it is simply part of the plotline. Thanks for reading. **


	2. Complicated

_Dearest cousin Albus,_

_Have you read the prophet this morning? I'm sure you have being that you are undoubtedly the youngest wizard to ever request a subscription. It was Dom and I in the headlines. Apparently we've had a giant row and are going our separate ways. To my best recollection it read "Weasley angst pulls family apart yet again". I thought that once I turned 20 they would use more grown up words to slander us. Angst is awfully juvenile, even for Dom don't you think? Anyway I'm writing to you because I'm sure after reading that article you and I have some of the same concerns. Dom and I did not row, she just can't afford the flat anymore and I can't go it on my own. So no worries there, however they were right when they said that it was likely that neither of us had made any other arrangements. I've been losing sleep for the last week trying to figure out where I'm going to live, but this morning I figured it out! Did you know that the flat right above yours is for rent? I wrote your landlady straight away and I move in next Friday. So it would be nice if you boys could put what little muscles you have to work and help me out since we're going to be neighbors and all. Anywho I'm gonna need you to spread the word to the family that I do have a place to live, and that the prophet is off its rocker once again. I'm going to drop a line to my Dad next before my Mom gets the chance to send me a howler or one of her crazy rambling lectures. Give my best to the boys. I'll see you in a few days favorite cousin!_

_XOXO,_

_Rose_

_Ps: just one more thing , Mom is going to be nagging me about money and my job so , being that I can't tell her the truth, I'm going to tell her that I'm going in with you on the bookstore and working there full time. MAKE SURE YOU GO WITH IT. Love you lots!_

I read over my letter and smiled. Al and I have this witty repartee that borders on sarcastic professionalism. We've always complemented each other which is why we get along so well. I know he won't lie for me though. Al is known for his moral fiber. He is the only one of us that the prophet doesn't regularly have a go at. But I always ask him to bridge the gap between me and my mum.

I've read in magazines about how strong the mother daughter relationship can be. Apparently as I grow older we're supposed to transition into best friends. I don't see this happening EVER. My Mum is doomed to be forever disappointed in me. It all started back in Hogwarts when she was forced to the realization that I wasn't as smart as she was. Once I turned 13 (and learned how to make myself look pretty) I became a social butterfly rather than a book worm. My mum just couldn't accept it. She became so nosy and intrusive. Her weekly letters turned into daily letters and eventually she stopped writing to me and went straight to Professor McGonagall. She tried everything from grounding me, to ignoring me, to forcing me to spend "quality time" with her at her office during the summers. I got at tattoo when I was 16, she tried remove it by force. And one winter break she intercepted the letters me and my friends had sent to each other, screening them for evidence of drug use, fornication, or other illicit activities (this was after she took away my muggle phone because she thought it was too much of a distraction). The last straw was when she started doing everything in her power to hook me up with nerdy Lorcan Scamander, including having him round for meals AND personally writing to him to give him advice on wooing me (HAH Jordan Wood blew that one out of the water). After I graduated she tried endlessly to get me a number of internships at the ministry, all of which I blew off. And now that leaves us with this strange love-hate relationship where we barely talk and when we do it usually turns into a screaming match.

Every Sunday I go over there for dinner. We say "Hi" and hug . Eventually she'll start picking at me and asking annoying ass questions and I'll have to walk away from her for a few minutes to keep from blowing up. My dad usually spends the evening trying to keep the peace between us. I do feel sorry for him, because it must be quite exhausting. He's gotta be ready to change the subject at any instant. My brother usually just sits there in silence. I know he can't stand the fighting, but he understands full well why our relationship is the way it is. My mother hates that fact that she can't control me. It terrifies her that everything she learned from her parenting books didn't work. I truly believe she thought I was going to grow up to be a carbon copy of herself. Well, I'm not and I'm glad that I'm not. I bet I would be just as miserable as she is. Definitely richer, but not nearly as happy.

This is where I'm headed as soon as I send off Al's letter. This little tradition of ours started right after I moved out. My mom agreed to help me out with some of my bills as long as she got to see me at least once a week. So now every Sunday I dress as modestly as possible and head over to my childhood home for some blackmailed bonding time. (And she adds a few galleons to my Gringotts vault)

I throw on a breezy yellow sundress and tame my hair. The goal is to look sweet and innocent so that I don't give my mother any ammunition against me (other than what she already has). I walk into the bathroom where Dom is in the shower rapping some song they play at the club.

"Oi, how do I look?" I ask.

She peeks her head out from behind the curtain, squinting so that soap doesn't run into her eyes. "Like a virgin." She says confidently.

"Perfect, thanks mate. I'll be back before sunset…..probably in a bad mood."

I walk straight from the bathroom to the fireplace. I hate flooing, I always have to spend five minutes cursing the soot off of my clothes afterwards. But it's better than walking all the way down to the alley to disapparate. Merlin forbid I be late to a dinner that probably won't even be ready for another hour.

Our house is far more modest than the half-mansion up the street that the Potters live in. Dad said Uncle Harry never wanted his children to feel like they were living in a cupboard under the stairs. Well that's all good and fine but the end result is complete overkill. I haven't got a clue what they do with all the extra space now that they have an empty nest. It's not like their fully grown children will ever appreciate their childhood bedrooms like they once did (although I would greatly appreciate to have any one of their bedrooms). In James' room there was a billiard table and a gym's worth of work out equipment (he was always terrified of being scrawny) , Al had floor to ceiling bookshelves and every type of muggle gadget his heart desired, and Princess Lily had herself a hotel room sized walk in closet and an effing BALCONY. So it's must be obvious that my brother and I (not to mention all of the other Weasley brats) just loved spending time at the Potter Inn. Who would have ever thought that Harry Potter's beautiful residence would serve as a party house, insane asylum, and refugee camp for runaways. Oh the woes of rich parents with teenagers.

Hugo and I didn't grow up in poverty, but my parents were a bit more conscientious about what we did or didn't get. Hugo became obsessed with photography just before he went to Hogwarts. My parents indulged his hobby, buying him muggle and Wizarding cameras alike until he started claiming that he wanted to pursue photography as a career. At that point I'm sure my mother started having nightmares about Hugo taking wedding photos and living in their house for the rest of his life and that was the end of that. Hugo has been working with Grandpa at the ministry along with our cousin Lucy (puke.) Me, I got whatever I wanted only when I asked Daddy, who always managed to slip a few extra galleons in my purse when I was hugging him goodbye. Mum stopped buying me clothes when I refused to go shopping with her because she couldn't stop nagging me about the importance of dressing _professional_. Unlike Lily my closet was always normal sized (although filled to the brim).

When I arrive in the kitchen my Dad and brother are enjoying a game of chess. My Mum hasn't even set the table yet.

"Is that you Rosie?" Dad asks without taking his eyes off of the board (to this day he is convinced that Hugo cheats every time he beats him at chess).

"Yeah it's just me. Who's winning?"

"I am." Hugo said simply, smiling as my Dad shouted at his bishop that had just been destroyed.

"Where's Mum?"

"She's upstairs changing into her dinner clothes."

"What does she think we're going to be photographed?" I sneer.

"Rose please don't start." My Dad begs. "And by the way your Mum and I were really worried when we saw that article about you and Dom."

"I tol ou 's crap." I mumble through the bite of apple I had just taken.

"Yeah well forgive me for expecting the worst when it comes to you and your cousin, you're both volatile_"

"Oi what do you mean by that?!"

"He means that the females in this family are barking." Hugo states "and also checkmate!"

"Son of a_"

"Ronald please, enough with the swearing! It's just a game."

I swallow hard as my mother approaches.

"Oh Rose, good I was_ ARE YOU EATING?!"

"Just an apple Mum, I was starved."

"You're here for dinner _"

"Which you haven't even started!"

"Rose!" my Dad interrupts in an overly cheerful voice "Why don't you and Hugo leave the room to catch up while your Mum and me fix dinner !"

I nodded and followed my kid brother out of the kitchen and up the stairs to the bedroom he still occupies. Merlin I hope for his sake he gets out of here soon.

"So what's going on with you Hugh?" I ask after I close his bedroom door and seat myself at his desk chair.

"Well same boring dead end job that I had when I saw you last week." He replied sadly. Hugo wasn't as interested in muggle artifacts as grandpa, Al, or even cousin Molly. He took the job when grandpa offered it simply to please my mother who seemed to think that his love of muggle cameras would transfer well into doing paperwork about jinxed door knobs and faulty sparkplugs.

"Well you said you were looking into something else, how did that go?"

"Oh, well yeah a bloke from the Department of International Cooperation was telling me that their looking for a photographer to go out and get some pictures for next year's pamphlets and brochures and such. So basically I would get to travel to America, and Germany, and places like that and photograph their ministry and their culture and yada yada yada_"

"I would think you would love that though, you'd get to travel, take pictures, you'd get the hell out of here. Isn't that what you want?"

"It's boring Rose! Why would I want to take pictures of people posing by their desks for corny ministry leaflets that no one will ever look at? What could I possibly gain from that?"

"So you'd rather just keep working with Grandpa then?" I ask skeptically.

He shakes his head "There was one more offer I got, but I don't know…"

"Well what is it?"

"Well Lorcan, Lorcan Scamander you know the twitchy bloke you dumped_"

"I know who he is Hugh!"

"Right well you remember then how he and Aunt Luna always had a…passion for magical creatures that_"

"Don't exist?"

"That most _believe_ don't exsist!" he corrected me "Anyway Lorcan is working on this anthology of all these different plants and creatures whose existence wizards debate over. He wants to continue his parents work and go looking for them."

Well Lysander was always the sanest in the family. I wonder if it's hard for him to be such a black sheep?

"He needs a photographer Rose, and he asked me if I'd be interested. I mean I'd be traveling a lot for a few years and he said sometimes it would be dangerous and of course I wouldn't get paid unless we found something and could actually sell the book but I really feel like this would be good for me. I could travel and explore and potentially be a part of something really big. I could take a photograph of something that could change Wizarding history….you know if we find a copper-toed flubberwhatsit or whatever."

In my gut , I felt like this journey with Lorcan was the worst thing he could do but he had such a look of excitement on his face . That's what it's all about in the end right? Everyone just wants to be happy. If chasing imaginary birds around the world with Lorcan is what makes my brother happy then I am on team Scamander Safari.  
" So then do it!" I say "What's stopping you?"

"Mum and Dad won't have it." He said sadly "They'll think it's stupid because there's no steady income and Mum thinks everything Aunt Luna believes in is a load of waffle anyway."

"Yeah well if Lorcan Scamander was good enough for me to marry I don't see why he isn't good enough to be your employer."

"I don't think Mum would have let you marry him when she found out this is what he wants to do with his life."

"Stop talking like she gets to make all of the decisions in our lives. We are grown-ups Hugh just because we don't make as much money as her doesn't mean that we make it our life's mission to please her!"

"Doesn't it? I can't support myself Rose! Just because I'm 20 doesn't mean I'm an adult. The Lorcan thing is stupid, I need to do something practical."

I sighed "You're okay with being miserable?"

"It'll only be for a little while. I just need to get on my feet."

"You just need to move out of here."

"Speaking of, is it true you're taking that flat above Al's?" he asked.

"Yeah I'm moving in at the end of next week. Dom can't come up with the rent for the London flat for some reason and I can't go it alone. This place is a lot smaller but it's well within my price range. I guess I'm gonna be miserable for a while until I get on my feet too."

"ROSE, HUGO DINNER IS READY!" Mum yelled up the stairs.

"Please don't fight with her Rose , you get to leave afterwards I'm stuck here to clean up the mess."

I felt a guilty knot in my stomach as I followed him down the stairs. That is usually the way of it. We scream at each other and I storm out, later I text Hugo to make sure she's okay and usually he tells me they calmed her down by helping her knit winter clothing for house elves or some nonsense like that. Hugo is right the women in this family are barking.

Thankfully, I managed to get through an entire meal of my mother's rather rubbery roast beef and potatoes without a single profane outburst. Mum and me stuck to small talk. The weather, Al's shop, whether she should dye her hair, it was all easy and friendly. Dad and Hugo looked relaxed and it seemed that I would actually be leaving in a pleasant mood that night.

Then there was that awkward break between dinner and desert. I thought it would be safer to remain at the table rather than be alone with my mother in the kitchen. Dad and I usually have good, healthy conversations. He'd probably ask me if I'd watched any quidditch or something and I would answer cheerfully and then make up some stories about whatever job I was pretending to have (since the truth would obviously send him into cardiac arrest). It seems that on this particular evening Dad wasn't interested in small talk.

Smashing.

"So Rose, you're definitely moving into that flat on Diagion Alley then?" he asked.

"Yeah, I move in next Friday actually." I answered lightly.

"You know that Wood is still living with them right?"

Hugo's eyes got big and I felt my face start to flush. "Yes Dad, I know. Jordan and I are friends remember?"

"I just don't know how comfortable I am with you living that close to him. He acted like a bit of a tosser Rose and there are rumors going around. He doesn't seem to be going down the path we all thought he was going to and the last thing I want is for you to get mixed back up with_"

"Dad I think I'm gonna go help Mum in the kitchen." I jumped up from the table and heard him sigh. _Count to ten_ I thought to myself _just count to ten and don't get upset._

"Mum do you need any help?" I asked her.

"Sure, you can help me carry one of the pies in. They'll be out of the oven in a minute I needed to reheat them but last time I burned them when I used my wand. I'm afraid I'll never be apt at household spells like that."

"Well Mum I reckon you did your fair share of exemplary magic back in the day , warming a pie up isn't all that important." I said.

"I suppose you're right." She said with a smile, bending down to remove the pies from the oven. "Rose I wanted to talk to you for a second without your Dad and brother around."

Oh. Sweet. Merlin. No

"See we were worried when the prophet reported that you and Dom were on the outs_"

"I told you it wasn't true though Mum , we just can't afford it anymore."

"Well you told your father that _Dom_ couldn't afford it anymore."

"Okay, what's your point?"

"I just started to think about why she would be struggling all of the sudden, she certainly still has her job and her salary hasn't changed."

"It's just poor spending habits Mum. We all know Dom is a little eccentric, she doesn't always think ahead and _"

"Rose is Dominique on drugs?" Mum blurted out with a look of absolute terror on her face.

"What?!"

"Well I just thought she has an awful lot of money disappearing and the prophet was always printing those terrible pictures of her at parties. It's such an easy lifestyle to get sucked into Rose and I just worried that you and your cousins_"

"Mum no one in this family is on drugs , please get a hold of yourself!" I say sharply just wanting to grab a pie and leave the room. At this point I'd much rather chat with my Dad about the pent up sexual tension between me and my alcoholic ex-boyfriend.

"Are you positive Rose? It's very suspect don't you think? And if she needs help we need to give it to her immediately. You can't let these things drag out, just look at what we had to do with Teddy! And poor Bill and Fleur don't need any more terrible publicity what with Louis and all that."

"Mum Please stop!" I snap " Dominique is not nor will she ever be on drugs. There is no need for an intervention and yes I am quite positive. Teddy did not need an intervention he just needed a swift kick in the ass THAT whole incident was a complete overreaction by the busybodies in this family AND I would hardly call Louis coming out bad publicity."

"Well of course not!" Mum exclaimed "It was just the way the prophet portrayed it_"

"Let's just go out to the dining room and have dessert okay?" I asked grabbing one of the pies "I don't want to fight with you, I just want this to be a nice evening."

Mum sighed like I had just trampled all over her feelings but followed me into the dining room where there was a strange blonde girl I had never seen standing awkwardly by the fireplace chatting with my Dad.

I glanced at Hugo who shrugged.

"Oh Persephone!" My Mum exclaimed, " I'm so glad you could make it dear we were just about to have dessert. Rose, Hugo this is Persephone Crypt she's interning in my office."

I smiled politely at the girl and then narrowed my eyes at my mum. "Are you by any chance related to my cousin's fiancé?" I asked her.

Dad walked back to his seat looking very uncomfortable.

"Oh yes," she answered in a sickly sweet voice "Andrea is my older sister." The look she shot me made it very clear that she knew exactly who I was and how her sister felt about me. Why she was at my dinner table I don't know. My mother knows enough about my life to understand that preventing the union of our family with the Crypts is very high on my priority list.

"Don't they look so much alike?" My mother smiled, shooting me a glance that begged me to be quiet. "Why don't you sit over there next to Hugo, would you like some pie?"

I stared at my mother in shock. This was vintage Hermione Weasley. Trick a well-to-do little blonde dolt into coming to dinner to try to spark a love connection with one of her children. It was mortifying. I'm pretty sure Dad and Hugo had caught on because Hugh's face was blood red and Dad looked like he was watching his son's slow, painful death.

"Mum, you cannot be serious right now?" I hear myself say before I can decide not to make a scene.

"What are you talking about Rose?" she doesn't look at me, this confirms my suspicions.

"This is Lorcan Scamander all over again! I can't believe you're still doing this shit!"

"Rose!" My Dad warned.

"No, I'm sorry I'm leaving. I'll not sit around and eat pie while you try to spoon feed your son an arranged marriage. Hugo if she's anything like her sister you had better go lock yourself in your room right now. I'm sorry Mum is putting you through this, you're welcome to come round my flat anytime mate."

"Rose enough!" my mum and dad yelled at the same time.

I shook my head, "Sometimes you should put your foot down Dad, I know you know how fucked up this is. Enjoy your pie."

Without a second though I disapparated appearing an instant later in the alley next to my building. After stomping up the stairs I slammed our door so hard that Dom nearly fell off the couch.

"Blimey what happened now?"

"Well they've got Hugo locked up there like a damn pet parrot, he's terrified to do anything he wants because he doesn't think he can support himself then Mum brings Crypt's little sister around for dessert."

"Eww she's still doing that creepy matchmaking stuff?!"

"Yeah! Poor Hugo, I swear that woman is too intelligent to comprehend the simplest of things."

"So she didn't really row with you though?"

"Oh no she did." I smiled "She asked me if you were on drugs and my dad decided to bring up Jordan and I don't think I can go over there anymore. This isn't normal."

"Well Rose you don't exactly have the best kept temper, you up and storm out of there every week for something she says or does."

"Because she is ridiculous!" I sat down in a chair and started breathing deeply. Dom allowed a few minutes of silence for me to calm down.

"Why does she think I'm on drugs?" she asked.

"Because you can't afford the flat anymore. She said she doesn't understand why." (Neither do I for that matter.)

Dom flushed a little bit and stared awkwardly at the ceiling. "You know I'm not on drugs right?"

"Well if you are you're the prettiest and cleanest drug addict I've ever seen."

She laughed and rolled off the couch "We need to do a lot of packing tonight."

"I know , I just need to change ."

"Rapunzel brought Al's response while you were out , it's over on the counter."

I stood up and walked over to the letter, Dom had been tactful enough not to read my mail like I sometimes read hers.

_Rose,_

_I hope you know that you are moving into a matchbox. And if I were you I would bring lots of candles , the woman that lived there before you kept turtles so the place smells like an aquarium. I don't mean to sound unexcited. I suppose it will be nice to see you all the time. I've told Jordan and James they are both looking forward to it. Although James seems to think that you're going to be doing a lot of , how shall I say this? Business? In the flat. I sincerely hope that isn't true. Of course I will pass information along if anyone asks but I don't want to get between you and your mother. That's a dangerous game. I won't lie to her, but you may if you'd like. I expect you're having Sunday dinner as usual so I would do it then. Of course we will help you move in next Friday (although I expect James will have a sudden meeting to attend or something) But Jordan was very willing. He's been getting worse. Your news seemed to cheer him up. I suppose you've always been able to do that. Let's not rehash any ancient history though alright? Business is really good thanks for asking ( this is of course a joke because as per usual you didn't ask about me or my business) I look forward to seeing you._

_Best Wishes,_

_Al_

_Ps: James would like you to ask Dom to give him back his sunglasses, she borrowed them last night but he suspects she's broken or lost them. (Personally I'd be glad to see them gone, they made him look like a real idiot) _

Well this was going to be an adventure.

**A/N: Please be patient with me my updates may come in slow.**

Next time:

_"So," I said trying to subtly ask an awkward question "where is Jordan?"_

_"In his room." James said as if it was the stupidest question in the world._

_"Oh, it's just him then?"_

_Al raised his eyebrows at me "Yes, who else would there be?"_

_I breathed a sigh of relief. "Well I don't want to go in to wake him up and find him in bed with some slag."_

_The Potters stared at me. I suppose it wasn't clear exactly what part of that statement was more hypocritical. On one hand I was a glorified slag by most people's standards and on the other hand I knew my way around Jordan Wood's bed probably better than any woman out there._

_"I would just like to avoid any awkwardness." I said_

_"Wouldn't we all." James mumbled._


End file.
